Northgate Mall is a shopping mall in the Northgate district of north urban Seattle, Washington. It is currently anchored by Bed Bath & Beyond, Toys "R" Us, JCPenney, Macy's and Nordstrom.

History

An open-air retail hub in the northern environs of Seattle was the first post-war, suburban mall-type shopping center in the United States. Originally known as Northgate Center, it began business with eighteen stores in April of 1950. By 1952, the fully-leased structure housed over seventy tenants.

Northgate was the first of three Puget Sound-area malls developed by Allied Stores (parent company of The Bon Marché) and designed by Seattle architect John Graham, Jr. The development was built over part of Thornton Creek, on land that had been a cranberry bog in Maple Leaf neighborhood. Northgate was the first regional shopping center in the United States to be described as a mall, in this instance a double row of stores facing each other across a covered pedestrian walkway. (also the first mall to have public restrooms.)

In 1952, Redmond sculptor Dudley C. Carter designed and carved the 59-foot (18 m) cedar totem pole that decorated the grand entrance to the central retail corridor, known as the "Miracle Mall". The shopping center was originally anchored by The Bon Marché (renamed Macy's 2005). There were also a J.J. Newberry 5 and 10, Butler Brothers variety store and an A & P Supermarket.

Other tenants signing on early that still exist were National Bank of Commerce (bought by Norwest, renamed Wells Fargo) and locally-owned Nordstrom's Shoes. This was expanded into a full line clothing store in 1965. Opened as a Best's Apparel, a division of the Nordstrom Company since 1963, it was rebranded as Nordstrom Best in 1967 and Nordstrom in 1973. The 1965 expansion that added the Best's Apparel store also included an extension of the south end of the complex. This was anchored by a new JCPenney and (Quality Food Center) grocery.

The "Miracle Mall" concourse had been partially enclosed with a "SkyShield" structure in 1962. This was replaced in 1973-1974, with the mall corridor being fully enclosed. The official name of the shopping complex was changed to Northgate Mall at this time. Seattle-based Lamonts added a store to the northern end of the concourse in 1977. After the acquisition of the Lamonts department store chain by Gottschalks in 2000, Gottschalks was located at Northgate Mall until September 2006. It closed after six years due to underperforming sales, and the former location is currently the home to DSW Shoes and Bed Bath and Beyond.

On September 12, 1983, Tracy Ann Wilson was abducted from Northgate Mall and murdered by Gary Ridgway, the Green River Killer.

Capitalizing on Northgate's success, Allied Stores commissioned Graham to design the fully enclosed Tacoma Mall, which opened in 1964, and Tukwila's Southcenter Mall in 1968. By 1980, there were 123 stores at Northgate Mall. Construction began in the summer of 2006 on a 100,000-square-foot (9,300 m2) lifestyle-type addition to the mall. This was completed in early 2008.Anchor stores are Toys "R" Us, Nordstrom, Macy's, J.C. Penney, and Bed Bath and Beyond.

Northgate Mall Remodeling Project

In 2006, Simon Properties embarked on an expansion of Northgate Mall in part because of the city's plan for revitalizing the Northgate neighborhood. The expansion plans included a new outdoor "urban-village" on the western end of the mall facing Interstate 5. This village opened in November 2007 and is now home to the following new shops and restaurants:

Stanford's Restaurant and Bar

Panera Bread

The Ram Restaurant

Barnes and Noble Booksellers

Blue Fin Seafood and Sushi Buffet

Starbucks Coffee

Verizon Wireless

Romano's Macaroni Grill

Gene Juarez Salon and Spa Expansion

Ulta Beauty

Subway

Chipotle Mexican Grill

Inside the mall, Simon has broadened its retail line by opening Icing, DSW Shoes, Wet Seal, Skechers USA, Sarku Japan, XXI Forever, Vans, Lids, and Bed, Bath and Beyond. A new five level parking garage at the south end of the mall provides parking for mall users as well as additional transit parking. The totem pole at the north entrance of the mall was removed in September 2007.

Anchors

Macy's (319,000 ft²)

J.C. Penney (168,800 ft²)

Nordstrom (122,187 ft²)'

DSW Shoes

Bed, Bath and Beyond

Toys "R" Us

Former

Gottschalks (now vacant)

Lamonts (later Gottschalks)

The Bon Marche (now Macy's)

Location

The mall is bounded on the north by NE Northgate Way (formerly NE 110th Street), on the west by 1st Avenue NE, on the south by NE 103rd Street, and on the east by 5th Avenue NE. The Northgate informal district and Northgate Way were both named after the mall. The original mall has itself become the anchor for development of surrounding apartment buildings, retail and light commercial blocks, and community spaces, all now part of a more comprehensive plan for such as the opportunities and impacts of transit facilities and the light rail station for the district nenette.

Express bus

The first express bus service in Washington State was launched with service between Northgate and Downtown (1970). The "Blue Streak" served as a model for dozens of additional park-and-ride routes implemented by Metro Transit over western King County and linking with Snohomish and Pierce counties.